Gambling
Gambling is a form of trust trade in RuneScape. It can come in many forms, some more common than others. All forms, however, follow the same principle, in which a 'host' uses RuneScape items that can have various outcomes, which players then bet on by giving the host money with the promise of receiving a prize (usually an expensive item or twice the coins originally wagered). Gambling hosts first became widely popular following the re-release of the Wilderness and Free Trade in February 2011, then suddenly surged in popularity over the years due to the profits that were possible for both bettors and hosts. However, they also brought in multiple problems: *Hosts would tend to spam the chat to advertise their games (sometimes even employing spam bots for this purpose). *Since all player-hosted gambling methods revolved around trust trades, scammers would often take advantage of other players. *The amounts of coins hosts amassed with their gambling caused significant damage to RuneScape's economy. *The profit potential was so vast that it greatly undermined legitimate ways of obtaining money, such as skilling and monster hunting, which many players felt was unfair on those who worked hard for their money. *Some gambling hosts have even been linked to real world trading. Because of the problems gambling brought into the game, Jagex responded with various measures. On 18 March 2013, in response to player complaints, Jagex added a new rule to the Rules of RuneScape stating that unoffical player-hosted gambling was prohibited, and that players found engaging in such activities would be punished depending on the degree. In addition, since gambling first surfaced in 2011, Jagex have taken multiple measures to deter gambling by removing the random elements that were used to gamble. As a reminder, all player-hosted gambling is considered against the Rules of RuneScape. As such it is not advised to engage in any of the below activities or similar activities. Dice game (obsolete) The dice game, popularly known as dicing, involved the use of the dice bag, which was obtainable from Faruq in Al-Kharid. Dicing hosts would open up their Friends Chat channels and invite bettors into the channel. The most common form of dicing involved bettors placing their wagers, and the host rolling percentile dice (1-100) for. If the dice landed above a certain number (usually 55 or higher), the bettors won an increased payout (usually twice their original wager). Alternatively, some hosts would play with traditional dice, in which bettors would bet on individual numbers. Regardless of the type of dicing, winning bettors would never get their payout most of the time. As a result, players began to complain about being scammed by this gambling method and Jagex responded by removing all dice bags from the game. Flower game (obsolete) The flower game became the major gambling game after dice bags were removed. It involved betting on what colour flowers would emerge from mithril seeds planted by the host. The bettors would first choose the colour(s) that they wagered on and pay the host their wager. The host would then plant a mithril seed. If the flower matched the bettor's pick, the bettor would win. A newer variation, called "hot and cold" emerged in 2012, in which the bettor would choose to bet on "hot" (red, orange, or yellow) or "cold" (blue, purple, or pastel), and would win if that type of colour showed up. On 18 March 2013, Jagex changed the way mithril seeds work. When planted, mithril seeds would now appear white and in a preset orientation to all players, but when picked, a random colour flower would appear in the planter's inventory, which would not be visible to other players. Horse game (obsolete) The horse game involved the use of the Toy horsey, obtainable from Diango in Draynor Village. The bettor would wager his/her money on which of the toy horsey's three phrases would come up upon the host playing with the horsey, in the hopes of winning an expensive item or triple the wager. The possible phrases were: *''"Come on Dobbin, we can win the race!"'' *''"Hi-ho Silver, and away!"'' *''"Neighhh! Giddy-up horsey!"'' Jagex responded to this by changing the toy horsey so that it now only has one phrase that is uttered upon playing with it: "Just say neigh to gambling!". This made the horse game obsolete. Miscellaneous methods Other methods used by gambling hosts included use of the 'Seal of Approval' emote, the Dungeoneering skillcape, the Classic cape, and the Easter ring. Most of these have been changed by Jagex to remove the "random chance" aspects. The 'Seal of Approval' now always shows the same seal, the Easter ring now always turns the wearer into a blue egg, and the Classic cape would always show a bubble with a Rune hatchet.